


Faith, Trust, and Green Poisonous Dust

by danversaddict



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Lames, Angry Lena Luthor, Angst with a Happy Ending, Eventual Happy Ending, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Goodnight everybody, I promise they kiss eventually, Lena Luthor Finds Out Kara Danvers is Supergirl, Lena Luthor Gets a Hug, Lena Luthor Needs a Hug, Lunch date that they don't know is a date gone wrong, Pre-existing Supergirl tags are amazing, This was gonna be a one-shot but shit dude, no betas we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2018-11-05
Packaged: 2019-08-19 06:10:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16528940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danversaddict/pseuds/danversaddict
Summary: What if Lena and Kara were having lunch together when the kryptonite was dispersed into the atmosphere?Inspired by @karadorkable on twitter.





	1. Chapter 1

“Have I ever told you that you're my favorite person?” Lena queried, green eyes alight with joy from seeing her best friend, who had also brought food with her. Kara smiled, giggling a bit as she ducked her head to adjust her glasses. Lena gestured for Kara to come in, and closed the door behind her while the blonde set the bag of Big Belly Burger takeout down on the glass table.

Lena walked around to the sofa, sitting to Kara's left. “Of course it's always nice when you visit, but I have to assume you're not _just_ here to have lunch with me. What else brought you?”

Kara made a shrug-like motion, hands falling into her lap. “I just wanted to see you, no ulterior motives.” The brunette could visibly watch her thinking. “But now that you mention it.. can you tell me what you know about Mercy Graves?”

The pair decided to eat while the food was still hot, Lena spilling information as well as parts of her childhood to her reporter friend between bites of burger. They continued talking long after the food was gone, laughing at stories from each other’s younger days until Kara checked her watch and noticed it was well past her lunch break time.

“We should have lunch together more often,” Kara acknowledged, still smiling despite the fact that she had to leave.

“Absolutely,” Lena nodded in agreement. “I can go to CatCo next time if you think it'd be alright?”

“I'm not really sure that's a good idea,” Kara replied hastily, knowing how often it seemed she had to leave the building for Supergirl emergencies. She amended her statement to be less suspicious. “Since you're the boss and all. Might make some people nervous.”

“Right,” Lena sighed. “Well- Kara?” Panic replaced whatever she was about to say as her friend fainted, falling across her lap. She quickly but carefully moved the blonde in order to stand, checking for a pulse and any exterior wounds although she hadn't heard a gunshot or had any other reason to believe that Kara was in danger. To Lena's relief, she was very much alive.. but her veins were a glowing spiderweb of green.

She pulled out her phone and dialed Alex’s number, acting with urgency and ignoring the pang of betrayal she felt to her core. Only one thing in the world had that effect on a person, and she knew that Kara wasn't human. But it wasn't important now, they could discuss this after Kara was safe.

“Hello?” came Alex’s voice from the other end of the call.

“Alex, it’s Kara. She just collapsed from kryptonite poisoning.”

“What? How do you know-”

“Doesn't matter right now, please hurry.”

“I'll be right there.”

Lena hung up, mentally going through anything she had that might help the situation. There was a chance that the kryptonite was directly bleeding into Kara's system, so she checked the blonde again for injury. Finding nothing, her second assumption was that someone had released kryptonite into L-Corp’s ventilation system. She left Kara's side to rifle through a drawer in her desk, procuring a small device just as Alex and a few DEO agents arrived.

Lena pocketed the device and followed them to HQ, not once taking her eyes off the blonde as she was laid on a gurney and carted off to a room with yellow sun lamps.

“Miss Luthor, you can't go back there-” She pushed her way past the agent guarding the door. He attempted to pull her out of the room before Alex waved him off.

“She's fine, I trust her.”

The impact of the director’s words would have been greater if not for the situation at hand. The sun lamps, combined with the anti-kryptonite shield did the job of stabilizing Supergirl but only enough to bring her back to consciousness. Lena’s heart ached seeing Kara in this much pain.

“There's nothing we can do. The kryptonite is everywhere.”

“If we take her off-world, she’ll die.”

“There has to be something we can do,” Alex pleaded.

“This might help,” Lena offered, handing the device from her pocket to Brainiac. He was ecstatic.

“What is that?” Alex asked, looking up from her sister to the device in Brainy’s hands.

“It’s-” Lena started.

“A radiation-controlled proto-environment housed in a vacuum-sealed mechanical exoskeleton,” Brainy interrupted, placing the device on Kara and pressing a button. The exoskeleton, complete with helmet, fitted itself to the Kryptonian’s body.

Too much time passed. Nobody moved, except for Lena, to stand opposite of Alex by Kara's other side. The situation seemed bleak, although with the addition of Lena's invention, Brainy calculated the probability of Kara's survival had jumped to 80 percent. Nobody stopped hoping.

Kara sat up. Two sets of arms flung themselves around her, and she recognized that she was alive but covered in something.. She went to remove the helmet.

“Don't!” Lena blurted, her hand shooting out to pull Kara’s away from the sealant. “The suit should help. Any breach in it, until we figure out how to reverse the contamination, will kill you.”

“Lena?” The glass dome covered head swiveled to face her. “How did you know..?”

Lena let go of Kara's hand, taking a step back as she remembered why she was angry. “I spent how long keeping Reign contained? I've seen more than enough to know how kryptonite affects your biology.” She deadpanned, crossing her arms over her chest and going into the ‘strictly business’ mode Kara hated seeing her in as Supergirl. It was too distant and cold for the blonde’s liking.

Kara turned to Alex. “Can, uh. Can we have a minute?” She heard Lena let out a ‘hmph’ and redirected her full attention to the brunette as her sister left the room, dragging Brainy with her.

“Bold of you to assume I want to talk.”

“Well.. do you?”

Lena’s face softened a bit, although she kept her distance and standoffish posture. “I thought we were done with keeping secrets.”

Kara burst out laughing in disbelief. “Oh, were we? Who else on this planet knows how to make the chemical that almost killed me five minutes ago?”

“That wasn't me,” Lena growled. “You were with me for god’s sake, how could it have been me?”

“You have a number of people willing to do anything you ask of them at your fingertips! All you had to do was say the word!”

Lena let out a frustrated shout and kicked the empty shell that once housed the exosuit across the floor, finally hitting her breaking point. She couldn't stay calm anymore when _Supergirl_  was ready to place the blame on her at the drop of a hat. “Why is it so hard for you to trust me?!” she yelled. “I may have not been getting along with Supergirl, but what would I gain from killing her?! From killing _you_?”

Kara had no answer for that one. She remained silent as Lena regained her composure, stilling her shaky voice and body. She took a deep breath and swiped the back of her hand across her face. “Exactly,” she grumbled, holding back more angry tears.

“Lena, I-”

“What?” she spat.

“I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to fault you for the kryptonite, I’m just.. scared. I don't want to live the rest of my life in this thing,” she gestured to the suit.

Lena shook her head. “You won't. I'll find a way to clear it, I promise you that. But if you want to continue this friendship, you're going to have to have a little bit of faith in me.” She left the room on that note, heading back to L-Corp. The blueprint for the dispersal device was sitting around somewhere, and she figured that was the best place to start. 


	2. Chapter 2

Kara was more claustrophobic in the suit than anyone, including Alex, had ever seen her. Almost a day later and she couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't hear Alex calling her and trying to calm her down. She'd kept it suppressed at first because she was alive and that's all that mattered, but she couldn't keep going like this.

 

“Kara, Kara look at me,” Alex kept trying. She caught one shoulder, then the other while Kara continued pacing in circles. It was as if a veil had descended to separate the Kryptonian from her reality and the hellscape of her nightmares.

 

Her eyes snapped up to her sister from inside the helmet. “Alex.”

 

“Yes, I’m here. I'm right here. Let’s go see Lena, okay? Stay with me.”

 

Kara nodded. She held on to Alex’s arm while they walked to L-Corp, effectively anchoring herself to the present. The sisters got some confused looks from civilians on the way. She had just enough sense to fly herself and Alex to the balcony outside Lena’s office before breaking down and taking off the helmet. 

 

Alex wrestled it back on to keep her alive until Lena saw them. The CEO was quick to let the two in. 

 

“What’s going on?” Lena asked, watching as Kara slid down the wall into a half crouch, one hand on either side of the helmet. Alex gently grabbed her wrists and pulled them away before she could take it off again. Kara started audibly sobbing.

 

“It's the suit. I think it reminds her of the pod too much, she can't stay in this thing,” Alex explained. She’d seen less intense versions of this behavior before, and knew better than to try touching her in this state. Lena wasn't as knowledgeable and Alex didn't warn her quickly enough. 

 

Lena knelt in front of Kara and took her hand. She wrenched it away with superhuman force, sending Lena flying into her. The CEO’s head bounced off the helmet with a  _ clunk _ and then Kara's arms were around her, preventing her from falling. 

 

“I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Lena,” she whimpered. The clarity vanished in a heartbeat. “I-It's gone. It's gone.” 

 

“What's gone?” Lena asked softly. She was still in Kara’s arms, but she trusted her friend to not crush her. 

 

“Home,” Kara replied in barely a whisper. Slowly and carefully, Lena pulled her up to her feet. “I'll never see it again. I'll never see anyone again.”

 

“Some people lived,” Alex reminded gently. “They're on Argo, remember?” Lena, still trapped, guided the blonde towards the lab room she'd kept Sam in simply by walking in that direction. 

 

“No.. no, no, I'll never see them again. I'll never see anyone again, I'm stuck in here forever.” Kara stared fearfully at some point beyond Lena, past the wall that was there. Lena kept walking.

 

“That's not true,” Lena looked to the point in the helmet where she believed Kara's eyes were. “Kara, hun, look at me.” She did. “We’re going to get you out of this. See?”

 

Lena pulled the helmet off. They were in the cell that once housed Reign, a cell that was infused with kryptonite. Kara took notice of the lack of suffocation, or any kind of disturbance to her person. She let go of Lena.

 

“How..?” Kara glanced around the room, utterly confused. The barrier that used to block Reign’s vision of the lab was now barely visible, a heat wave shimmering in and out of existence with a purple tinge. She reached out to touch it, hissing in pain when her hand hit the air outside the ‘cell.’

 

Lena sat the helmet down on the floor and stood, walking over to join her friend at the barrier. “I know it's not much better than the suit, but you have a little more space-”

 

“It's perfect,” Kara interrupted. Her face flushed when their eyes met. “I mean, you're perfect- I mean, uh,” she took a moment to breathe, a goofy grin taking its place on her face. “Thanks.”

 

Lena laughed, beaming from the compliments. She didn't agree, but couldn't help tolerating them from Kara.

 

“What, uh, what I meant to ask was how you did this in such a short time.”

 

“Oh, I reversed the synthetic kryptonite I used to hold Reign and,” Lena gestured to the barrier, “grafted it into an oxygen purification system. It filters out the kryptonite and you can breathe safely.” She walked through the filter to the lab table in front of the old cell, smoothing down the blueprint for the device that caused this problem in the first place with a frown. “Unfortunately, we can't just release this into the atmosphere without knowing the effects it could have on other alien species, or humans, or wildlife.”

 

“What if I sit with Kara for a while? You can run tests, or scans, or whatever it is that you need to do,” Alex offered.

 

“You have an agency to direct,” Kara reminded her.

 

“I-” Alex sighed. There was no use arguing with her sister. She was too stubborn for her own good. “Fine.” She looked over to Lena. “Call me if either of you need help, okay?” Lena nodded in agreement. 

 

“I'll have her home by eleven,” she joked with a tight smile. She'd definitely need more time than that to sort this out. Alex laughed on her way out, leaving Lena to stare at the blueprint and muse over possible solutions. Barring any confounding variables, the chances of the reversed kryptonite having the desired effects were slim. It might nullify the kryptonite in the air, but for how long? The filter over Kara’s temporary room was constantly renewing itself. It might soften the kryptonite, but how much? It might-

 

“Lee?” Kara’s voice interrupted. “I'm kinda hungry.” ‘Kinda’ was a severe understatement on her part, but she hesitated to say anything to begin with. She couldn't exactly go get food herself, though, so she had to ask.

 

Lena blindly patted three of four pockets before figuring out which one contained her phone. Once she found it, she walked over and gave it to the blonde through the filter. “Here, call in whatever you'd like, I’ll go pick it up.”

 

“What do you want?” Kara asked, knowing Lena probably hadn't eaten since she last saw her. The CEO had a remarkable tendency to forget she wasn't a machine when she was working.

 

“I'm fine with whatever you choose,” Lena replied. She was about to return to the table, but a hand on her wrist stopped her. 

 

“Ow, shoot that hurts. Stupid dust,” Kara muttered as she shook her briefly green-webbed hand out. She put on her puppy dog eyes and looked up at Lena. “Sit and eat with me?” she asked, pouting.

 

“I don't have the time,” Lena replied. Seeing how those words instantly affected Kara, she changed her mind. She couldn't stand the blonde looking anything less than happy. “Well.. on the other hand, I suppose you're safe for the moment. Alright.”

 

Kara lit up like a Christmas tree, grinning as she called the local pizzeria and placed an order. “And half- Lee, what toppings do you want?”

 

“Whatever you're having is fine.”

 

“Nevermind, make that all pepperoni.” Everyone liked pepperoni, right? She didn't want to overdo it with toppings in case Lena didn't like something. “Yep, that's all. Thanks!” She hung up. “Twenty minutes.”

 

Lena nodded. “Okay, let me know.” She turned to head back to the table again. 

 

“Wait! Can you work over here? I promise I'll be quiet.”

 

Lena smiled slightly before she moved the blueprint and various other materials over closer to where Kara sat. Deciding this wasn't close enough, she brought everything she needed into the protected room. 

 

The brunette sat cross-legged on the floor with a pencil in hand, tapping the eraser against her red-stained lips. “You don't  _ have _ to be quiet. Why don't you tell me about Krypton?” she asked, looking up to meet Kara's soft blue gaze. The blonde grinned.

 

“I’d love to.”

 

Half an hour later, Kara was leaning against Lena’s left side so she was still able to work, regaling her with some stories from her childhood as well as general descriptions of her home planet. Lena was still writing down and scratching out different ideas on her fifth sheet of notebook paper while listening to her friend intently. Suddenly, an answer struck her as Kara spoke. 

 

“Hold on, what did you just say?”

 

“You haven't been listening?” Kara asked, somewhat dejectedly.

 

“I promise you I have, I just need to hear that last story again.”

 

“When I was four I caught the Kalanorian flu while spending a day off Krypton?”

 

“Yes, and Kryptonians don't get sick because..”

 

“Because we got rid of disease on our planet. But it was an easy fix since we had..” Kara frowned, struggling to find the word in english.

 

“Had what?”

 

“I.. sorry, sometimes when I talk about Krypton I forget words.”

 

“Take your time,” Lena encouraged, furiously jotting down notes. 

 

“Tiny.. robotic things that ate the bacteria.”

 

“Nanites?” Lena offered. “Like Biomax. What if we could reprogram them to eat the kryptonite?”

 

“You’re a genius!” Kara exclaimed, grinning.

 

“So I’ve been told,” Lena replied with a laugh. “Do you think Brainiac would help me?”   
  
“Definitely. But.. can you go get that pizza first?”


	3. Chapter 3

Lena left to substantiate her idea with Brainy’s help after eating a slice of pizza. Kara was left alone with the remainder of the box, which she was more than hungry enough to finish, but she stopped herself after three slices.

Alex called her shortly after Lena got to the agency to let her know that they had a lead on where Mercy and Otis were hiding out. She warmed the rest of the pizza up with her heat vision, intending to take the rest with her back to the DEO in case her sister was hungry. Only one obstacle stood in her way: the helmet.

Kara refused to let the suit inhibit her ability to fight now that the Graves siblings were finally within reach. “Come on, you've been in worse situations,” she mumbled to herself as she pulled the helmet on. Telling herself it was fine didn't help the gnawing fear in the pit of her stomach. Her breathing crescendoed with the beat of her heart and her vision blurred before she decided to take the helmet back off. She steadied herself against the wall.

Her earpiece buzzed to life. “Supergirl, are you there?” Hearing Alex’s voice helped immensely.

“Yeah I'm here,” she responded, getting ready to try again with the helmet. “Do you have a location?”

“National City Fairgrounds.”

Kara took a deep breath and forced the helmet on. “On my way.”

“Like hell you are,” Lena cut in. “You can't jeopardize yourself like this. The suit could fail if it’s strained too much.”

Kara was already in the air at this point, dropping the pizza on the main console at the DEO before anyone could blink. “I trust that it'll hold. The smartest woman in the world did make it, after all.”

“The suit is dedicating most of its energy to keeping the kryptonite out of your system,” Lena said sternly. She looked Kara in the eyes as best as she could, crossing her arms as she continued to speak. “If you go out there-”

“I won't get hit!” Kara countered again before taking off.

“That's not the problem. You can't fight either, the suit _will_ fail and ventilation will overheat or shut down.”

“Lee, I'll be careful. I can't just stand by.”

Kara arrived at the fairground. Lena glared at her through the surveillance cameras Brainy had pulled up on the giant screen. “If you get hurt I’ll kill you.”

Supergirl had already begun fighting, and laughed as she dodged a thrown pie stand. While Lena and Brainy focused on clearing the atmosphere, Kara had help from Alex and other DEO agents in defeating the mind controlled aliens.

The suit locked up.

Panic seemed to replace the blood flowing through Kara’s veins. She couldn't move, found herself unable to breathe, and yet she hesitated to break out. She heard Lena's voice in her ear telling her to hang in there, that the air was almost clear, that she was safe and everything would be alright in three.

Two.

“One.”

She burst out of the suit, sending a direct punch to Otis’s face that sent him flying upward. Mercy was about to shoot, but the rogue alien delivered a spike into her heart before she could pull the trigger.

He surrendered. Mercy was dead on the spot, and Otis landed with his neck bent at an unnatural angle. The DEO took the alien into custody.

“Are they..” Kara glanced at the Graves siblings, shooting a mildly concerned look to her sister. Alex nodded, but seemed nonplussed about the situation.

“They can't hurt anyone anymore,” was all she had to offer. She wouldn't feel remorse for the people who tried to kill her sister. Kara remembered that Mercy also tried to kill Lena as well as endangering alien lives everywhere, and decided to let this one go. The bodies were taken off-site by DEO personnel. She had plenty of time to think about the situation during the flight back and found that the Graves’ deaths were for the best.

Kara felt incredibly light after she was able to take the suit off. She walked towards her friends with a bright smile, glad the Graves were finally out of play. “That was-” she was caught off guard by Lena ambushing her with a hug, tight enough that it would hurt if Kara weren't Kryptonian. “-close,” she finished her statement into Lena's shoulder. She returned the sentiment, one arm around the CEO’s upper back and one around her waist. They stayed like that for a moment, Kara baffled into silence, before Lena pulled away.

“I'm sorry,” Lena blurted, emerald green eyes full of regret.

“Maybe we should..” Kara gestured to the balcony. Lena nodded in agreement and followed her out, glancing back to the mostly empty room that contained only Alex and Brainy. Alex gave her a thumbs up.

Kara stopped first, turning to face Lena with furrowed eyebrows and a look of confusion.

“I understand why you had to keep your secret a secret,” Lena admitted. “I'm sorry for being so harsh, and I'm sorry it took almost losing you to realize this was a stupid fight to pick.”

Kara shook her head, reaching out to gently hold on to Lena's upper arm. “It wasn't stupid. After everything you've been through.. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you sooner. I do trust you. With everything.”

“Everything?” Lena questioned. The blonde nodded to confirm, to which the brunette smiled. “And I trust your judgment, although this time you only got away safely because we managed to speed up the kryptonite cleansing.”

“I know, I know,” Kara surrendered. “Got off on a technicality.” She paused for a moment, accidentally activating her pout. “Since we're doing apologies, I'm sorry for blaming you for the kryptonite attack and for getting angry at you for having it in the first place.”

“It's alright. I _was_ going to tell you, though,” Lena replied with a chuckle as she noticed the pout. “Put that away before it hurts somebody.”

Kara smiled again as requested. “And..” She paused for a moment to make a decision. She felt especially brave after the day’s events. “There's one other thing.”

She leaned forward slowly, but Lena surprised her by kissing her first. It was brief but carried out the exact message she wanted to convey. “I've been wanting to do that for a while too,” Lena said after they separated. The brunette looked up to the sky, observing the stars that were barely visible in the harsh light of the city. “Let’s go get something to eat?” she suggested, turning back to see Kara watching her with the same stars in her eyes.

“I'd love to.”


End file.
